Heather Ross's research at RFF has focused on regulatory reform, energy policy, and climate change. She brings to this work a background in government, industry, and public policy analysis.

Her government service includes appointments as senior economist of the U.S. Senate Committee on the Budget, deputy assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior, and special assistant to the President for economic policy. She worked for ten years in the international oil industry, including positions as vice-president of BP America and assistant director of BP Europe. Her earliest employment was in think tanks, as a thesis-writing fellow at the Brookings Institution and a senior research associate at the Urban Institute.